Apparatus for selectively actuating passenger safety devices in vehicles

ABSTRACT

An automobile having a series of passenger-restraint devices including electrically-actuated inflatable air bags mounted at preselected locations in the passenger compartment is provided with apparatus which operates to actuate selected ones of the restraint-devices in response to front, rear or side collisions. The apparatus comprises an inverted hollow conical housing which contains a free ball and which is divided into quadrants by separate arcuate electrical contacts mounted inside and along the rim of the housing. The contacts are connected by means of circuits to the restraint devices so that in a collision the ball rolls up the conical wall of the housing and engages the contacts to close the circuits and thereby to actuate the devices. In one embodiment, the housing is divided by a diametrically-extending partition which bisects opposed ones of the contacts and a ball is mounted on each side of the partition so that when the apparatus is mounted in an automobile with the partition extending sideward of the vehicle, each ball is capable of engaging contacts corresponding either to the left or the right and the front or rear bags.

titted States Patent 1 91 Johnston 1March 13, 1973 1 APPARATUS FORSELECTIVELY ACTUATING PASSENGER SAFETY DEVICES IN VEHICLES [76]Inventor: Harry R. Johnston, 110 Seltzer Avenue, Coatesville, Pa. 19320[22] Filed: June 28, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 157,569

[52] US. Cl ..280/150 AB, 180/103, ZOO/61.45 R

Primary Examiner- Kenneth H. Betts Assistant Examiner-D. M. MitchellAttorney-Howson & Howson [57] ABSTRACT An automobile having a series ofpassenger-restraint devices including electrically-actuated inflatableair bags mounted at preselected locations in the passenger compartmentis provided with apparatus which operates to actuate selected ones ofthe restraintdevices in response to front, rear or side collisions. Theapparatus comprises an inverted hollow conical housing which contains afree ball and which is divided into quadrants by separate arcuateelectrical contacts mounted inside and along the rim of the housing. Thecontacts are connected by means of circuits to the restraint devices sothat in a collision the ball rolls up the conical wall of the housingand engages the contacts to close the circuits and thereby to actuatethe devices. In one embodiment, the housing is divided by adiametrically-extending partition which bisects opposed ones of thecontacts and a ball is mounted on each side of the partition so thatwhen the apparatus is mounted in an automobile with the partitionextending sideward of the vehicle, each ball is capable of engagingcontacts corresponding either to the left or the right and the front orrear bags.

6 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures FRO N T ACTUATO R REAR ACTUATOR APPARATUSFOR SELECTIVELY ACTUA'IING PASSENGER SAFETY DEVICES IN VEHICLES Thepresent invention relates to apparatus for use in conjunction with aseries of passenger-restraint devices in an automobile to actuateselected ones of the devices in response to collisions in variousdirections or upsets.

Devices are known for actuating safety devices such as inflatable bagsto protect passengers in an automobile from injury in the event of acollision. Examples of such devices are disclosed in U. S. Pat. Nos.:3,510,150; 2,806,737; 2,860,003; 3,414,292; 2,902,292; and 3,430,979.Although each of these devices may operate satisfactorily to activate aninflatable bag located ahead of a passenger, non is capable ofactivating selected bags around the passenger in response to eitherfront, rear or side collisions. Moreover, none of these devices is ofsuch simple construction as to enable it to be manufactured by low-costmass production techniques. Although an inertia switch for use inemergency devices in aircraft is disclosed in U. S. Pat. No. 2,890,303,such device does not possess selective actuation capabilities.

With the foregoing in mind, it is a primary object of the presentinvention to provide a novel device for actuating selected ones of aplurality of safety devices in a vehicle in response to a collision ofthe vehicle in various directions or an upset.

It is another object of the present invention to provide for use withpassenger-restraint devices unique apparatus which is of simpleconstruction and which is capable of being manufactured economically bymass production techniques As a further object, the present inventionprovides reliable actuating apparatus for use in an automobile inconjunction with safety devices of the inflatable-bag type.

More specifically, in the present invention apparatus is provided foractuating selected ones of a series of passenger restraint devices whichare mounted at critical locations in the passenger compartment of anautomobile to prevent serious injuries to passengers in response tocollision of the automobile in various directions. The apparatuscomprises a housing having an inverted conical wall and asimilarly-shaped cover spaced from the wall, means for mounting thehousing to the automobile, and a ball mass normally seated in the apexof the housing and confined in the housing for free displacement up thewall of the housing in response to collision-induced deceleration of theautomobile. The upper level of the housing is divided into quadrants byseparate electrical contact means which extends around the rim of thehousing and which is disposed in the path of movement of the ball so asto be engaged by the ball. Circuit means connects the electrical contactmeans to the various restraint devices.

The apparatus is mounted in the vehicle with the axis of the housingdisposed vertically and the quadrants arranged substantially parallel tothe front, rear and sides of the automobile. Thus, upon collision of theautomobile in any of these directions, the ball is displaced by inertiaup the wall of the housing to engage the contact means for actuating theappropriate restraint device. In one embodiment, the contact meansincludes spaced parallel conductors in each quadrant with the ballcompleting a circuit when it engages across the conductors; in anotherembodiment, the housing is metal and is grounded to the frame of theautomobile, and the contact means includes a single conductor insulatedfrom the housing in each quadrant and connected by a single wire to itsassociated restraint device with the ball completing a circuit betweenselected conductors and the housing. In a still further embodiment, apartition divides the housing diametrically and bisects the sidequadrants, and a ball is provided on each side of the partition so thatthe time required for the ball to engage the contacts in the front andrear quadrants in response to sequential front and rear collisions inreduced.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention should become apparent from the following description whentaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an automobile in which ismounted a series of inflatable bags connected to apparatus embodying thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 but with a cover of itshousing removed to expose a free ball contained therein;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2 to illustrateelectrical contact means mounted along the inside of a rim of thehousing;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 3 but illustrating a modifiedembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 2 but of another modified embodiment ofthe present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a sectional view similar to FIGS. 3 and 4 but taken along line6-6 of FIG. 5.

Referring now to the drawing, there is illustrated schematically in FIG.1 an automobile 10 in which is mounted a series of passenger safetydevices, in the present instance four inflatable bags 11, 12, 13, and 14located on the drivers side of the passenger compartment. In theconventional installation, the bags are mounted in the automobile insuch a manner that the bag 11 is located ahead of the driver, the bag 12is located behind the driver, and the bags 13 and 14 are located to theright and left, respectively, of the driver.

' In the illustrated automobile, only one series of bags for the driveris illustrated since in many instances the driver is the only passengerin the automobile. Of course, it should be understood that a like seriesof bags may be provided for each additional passenger.

Inflatable bags are customarily actuated by an electrical signalgenerated in response to a collision. Heretofore, however, the bagactuators have operated simultaneously to inflate all the bagsregardless of the direction of the collision. Simultaneous actuation isundesirable not only because in some collisions it may be unnecessaryfrom a safety standpoint, but also because of the possibility of thepassengers suffocating or being injured when simultaneously engaged onall sides by the bags.

The aforementioned disadvantages are avoided by the present inventionwhich provides apparatus 15 (FIG. 1) for actuating selected ones of thebags, depending on the direction of the collision and the reaction ofthe collision on the passengers. For example, in response to a frontalcollision, the apparatus 15 operates to actuate the front bag 11 toprevent a passenger in the front seat from being thrown against thewindshield or a passenger in the back seat against the back of the frontseat. In response to a rear collision, the apparatus 15 operates toactuate the rear bag 12 to prevent the passengers head from beingwhipped rearw'ardly. The apparatus 15 operates similarly to actuate theright and left bags 13 and 14, respectively, in response to sidecollisions to prevent the passenger from being thrown against the doorsor other passengers.

To this end, the apparatus 15 comprises a housing 15 (FIGS. 2 and 3), afree metal ball 17 providing a moveable mass in the housing 16, andelectrical contact means 18 engageable by the ball 17 in response to acollision to complete a circuit to actuators for the various bags. Thehousing has a wall or surface 16a which inclines upwardly and outwardlyin opposite directions from a base 19 which mounts the housing 16 to theframe a of the automobile, for instance, by means of threaded fasteners20,20 or the like. In the illustrated embodiment, the wall 160 iscontinuous and has an inverted conical shape, and the housing has acontinuous upstanding rim 16b surrounding the upper level of thehousing. The ball 17 is contained in the housing 16 by a cover 22 whichextends across the top of the housing and which is formed downwardlyinto a conical shape corresponding to the shape of the inside wall 16aof the housing 16. The inside of the cover 22 is spaced from the wall16a of the housing a dimension which is slightly greater than thediameter of the ball 17. Thus, the ball 17 is permitted to move up thewall 160; but the ball 17 is prevented from bouncing in the housing andinadvertently actuating the bags as otherwise would occur, for example,when the automobile is travelling on an undulating roadway or a roadwayhaving a series of holes. Preferably, the cover 22 engages over the rim21 and is removably fastened to the housing as by a friction connection,threads or the like to facilitate manufacture of the apparatus.

In order to provide the apparatus with means to determine the directionof collision of the vehicle, the electrical contact means 18 is dividedinto quadrants A, B, C, and D within the housing, and the contact means18 in each quadrant is connected to the actuator of one of the bags bycircuit means 25, 26, 27, and 28, respectively. For example, as seen inFIGS. 1 and 3, the electrical contact means 18 in quadrant A isconnected to the actuator for the front bag 11 by wires 25; theelectrical contact means in quadrant B is connected to the actuator forthe rear bag 12 by wires 26; and the electrical contact means inquadrants C and D are connected to the actuators for the right and leftside bags 13 and 14 by wires 27 and 28, respectively.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, the contact means 18comprises a pair of arcuately-shaped, electrically-conductive bars ormembers l8a,l8a which are mounted inside the rim 16b around the upperlevel of the housing 16. The members l8a,l8a are disposed in spacedparallel relation with one another and they are located in the path ofmovement of the ball 17. Preferably, the upper one of the membersextends inwardly of the rim 16a a slightly greater distance than thelower member to ensure simultaneous engagement of both members by theball, for example, as illustrated in broken lines in FIG. 3. Thus, whenthe front of the automobile 10 collides with another automobile or anobject, the ball 17 rolls up the surface 16a and engages across theelectrical contacts l8a,l8a in the quadrant A'to complete the circuit 25to the actuator for the front bag 11 and thereby to inflate the bag 11.Likewise, a rear collision causes the ball 17 to roll in the oppositedirection up the surface 16a to engage across the contacts l8b,l8b inthe quadrant B to complete the circuit 26 to actuator for the rear bag12 and thereby to actuate the bag. A similar action occurs with respectto side collisions. As an additional advantage, the ball 17 is capableof sequentially engaging the various electrical contacts forsequentially actuating their associated bags. For instance, in acollision in which the automobile is struck in the rear after beinginvolved in a frontal collision, the ball 17 is capable first ofengaging the front contacts l8a,l8a and then of engaging the rearcontacts l8b,l8b. Moreover, in the event that the automobile rotates ona vertical axis after a collision the ball is capable of rotating in thehousing relative to the contacts to sequentially actuate the variousbags.

A modified embodiment of the present invention which operates insubstantially the same manner as the aforedescribed embodiment isillustrated in FIG. 4. In this embodiment, the housing 116 and cover 122are of metal construction, and the housing 116 is grounded to the frameof the automobile. The electrical contact means 118 is electricallyinsulated from the rim l16b of the housing 116 by means of insulation140, and the contact means 118 is connected through circuit means to atypical bag actuator which is also grounded to the frame of theautomobile. As in the aforedescribed embodiment, the contact means 118is separated into segments or quadrants; however, in this embodiment,the contact means comprises a single conductive element. Thus, when theball 117 rolls up the wall of the housing 1 l6 and engages the contactelement 118, the circuit to the typical actuator is completed throughthe ball 117, and the housing 116, and the frame of the automobile. Withthis structure, it is necessary for only one wire to be run to thevarious bags.

A further embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 5and 6 and is substantially the same structurally as the embodiment ofFIGS. 2 and 3. In this embodiment, a partition 250 extends diametricallyacross the housing 216 to bisect opposite ones of the electricalcontacts 218, and a pair of ball masses 217,217 are located on oppositesides of the partition 250. With this structure, the elapsed timerequired to sequentially actuate front and rear bags is substantiallyreduced because the corresponding reduction in the travel distance ofthe ball mass in the housing. As an additional advantage, each ball mass217 is capable of engaging the bisected side contacts so that in theevent that one ball 217 does not engage the right or left contacts onits side of the partition in a side collision, the other ball is capableof engaging the right or left contacts on its side of the partition.Thus, a degree of redundancy is provided for the apparatus to increasethe reliability thereofv Moreover, it is noted that the rim 216b of thehousing 216 is disposed at a right angle to the inclined wall of thehousing, thereby eliminating the necessity of employing contact membersof different sizes to ensure engagement thereacross by the ball as inthe embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 3.

Apparatus having the structure of FIGS. 5 and 6 has been testedsatisfactorily. in the test structure, the wall of the housing wasinclined at an angle of 45 with respect to the horizontal and the slantdistance from the partition to the rim of the housing was approximately3 inches. A metal ball weighing approximately ounce and approximately Ainch in diameter was contained in the housing. The apparatus was foundto engage the electrical contacts and to complete a circuit upon impactwith solid objects at velocities as low as 10 miles per hour.

The apparatus of the present invention is adapted to be manufactured bylow-cost mass production techniques. For instance, the housing and coverare preferably of molded plastic or pressed steel construction, and themoveable mass is preferably provided by a steel ball of the typeemployed in conventional ball bearings. Thus, relatively low cost buteffective and reliable apparatus is provided for activating selectedones of a series of passenger safety devices in an automobile inresponse to collision of the automobile in various directions.

While preferred embodiments of the present invention have been describedin detail, various modifications, alterations and changes may be madewithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention asdefined in the appended claims.

lclaim:

i. For use in conjunction with a vehicle capable of accelerating in atleast two directions and having at least two electrically-actuatedpassenger safety devices operable to minimize injury to a passenger inresponse to acceleration in said directions, apparatus for actuatingselected ones of said devices in response to accelerations ofpredetermined magnitudes in corresponding ones of said directions,comprising:

a housing having surface means inclined in said directions from a lowerlevel to an upper level, said surface means inclining outwardly and inopposite directions from said lower level, a partition disposedtransversely to said opposite directions in said housing,

means for mounting said housing to said vehicle,

mass means mounted in said housing for movement upwardly on said surfacemeans in response to acceleration of said vehicle in said directions,said mass means including a pair of moveable masses with the massesbeing located on opposite sides of the partition,

contact means mountedat said upper level in said housing and disposed inthe normal path of movement of the mass means, said contact means beingseparated into segments corresponding in number to said directions, andcircuit means for connecting each segment of said contact means to itscorresponding safety device, whereby acceleration of the vehicle in oneof said directions displaces the mass means up one of the surface meansto engage the contact means for actuating the safety devices associatedtherewith. 2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said mass meansincludes a metal ball and including an inverted hollow cone providingsaid surface means with said lower level correspondin substantially tothe apex of the cone and said upper evel corresponding su stantially tothe rim of the cone.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 including a cover mounted on saidhousing and spaced from said inclined surface means to permit passage ofsaid mass means therebetween but to prevent substantial random upwarddisplacement of said mass means in the housing.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said inclined surface meansand said mass means are of electrically-conductive materials and saidcontact means includes electrically conductive elements disposedtransversely to the path of movement of the mass means, insulator meansmounting said elements to said housing, said circuit means connectingsaid inclined surface means and said contact elements to theirrespective safety devices so that a circuit is established between theinclined surface means and the contact elements by the mass means foractuating the safety devices when the mass means engages the elements.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said contact means includes apair of electrically-conductive contact members disposed in spacedparallel relation with one another and transversely to the path ofmovement of the mass means, said circuit means connecting said membersto said safety devices so that a circuit is established between thecontact members for actuating the safety devices when the mass meansengages across the members.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said surface means alsoinclines in the direction of said partition, and said contact meansincludes segments disposed transversely to said partition and extendingon opposite sides thereof, whereby additional safety devices may beactuated in response to acceleration in the direction of said partitionv

1. For use in conjunction with a vehicle capable of accelerating in atleast two directions and having at least two electrically-actuatedpassenger safety devices operable to minimize injury to a passenger inresponse to acceleration in said directions, apparatus for actuatingselected ones of said devices in response to accelerations ofpredetermined magnitudes in corresponding ones of said directions,comprising: a housing having surface means inclined in said directionsfrom a lower level to an upper level, said surface means incliningoutwardly and in opposite directions from said lower level, a partitiondisposed transversely to said opposite directions in said housing, meansfor mounting said housing to said vehicle, mass means mounted in saidhousing for movement upwardly on said surface means in response toacceleration of said vehicle in said directions, said mass meansincluding a pair of moveable masses with the masses being located onopposite sides of the partition, contact means mounted at said upperlevel in said housing and disposed in the normal path of movement of themass means, said contact means being separated into segmentscorresponding in number to said directions, and circuit means forconnecting each segment of said contact means to its correspondingsafety device, whereby acceleration of the vehicle in one of saiddirections displaces the mass means up one of the surface means toengage the contact means for actuating the safety devices associatedtherewith.
 1. For use in conjunction with a vehicle capable ofaccelerating in at least two directions and having at least twoelectricallyactuated passenger safety devices operable to minimizeinjury to a passenger in response to acceleration in said directions,apparatus for actuating selected ones of said devices in response toaccelerations of predetermined magnitudes in corresponding ones of saiddirections, comprising: a housing having surface means inclined in saiddirections from a lower level to an upper level, said surface meansinclining outwardly and in opposite directions from said lower level, apartition disposed transversely to said opposite directions in saidhousing, means for mounting said housing to said vehicle, mass meansmounted in said housing for movement upwardly on said surface means inresponse to acceleration of said vehicle in said directions, said massmeans including a pair of moveable masses with the masses being locatedon opposite sides of the partition, contact means mounted at said upperlevel in said housing and disposed in the normal path of movement of themass means, said contact means being separated into segmentscorresponding in number to said directions, and circuit means forconnecting each segment of said contact means to its correspondingsafety device, whereby acceleration of the vehicle in one of saiddirections displaces the mass means up one of the surface means toengage the contact means for actuating the safety devices associatedtherewith.
 2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said mass meansincludes a metal ball and including an inverted hollow cone providingsaid surface means with said lower level corresponding substantially tothe apex of the cone and said upper level corresponding substantially tothe rim of the cone.
 3. Apparatus according to claim 1 including a covermounted on said housing and spaced from said inclined surface means topermit passage of said mass means therebetween but to preventsubstantial random upward displacement of said mass means in thehousing.
 4. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said inclined surfacemeans and said mass means are of electrically-conductive materials andsaid contact means includes electrically conductive elements disposedtransversely to the path of movement of the mass means, insulator meansmounting said elements to said housing, said circuit means connectingsaid inclined surface means and said contact elements to theirrespective safety devices so that a circuit is established between theinclined surface means and the contact elements by the mass means foractuating the safety devices when the mass means engages the elements.5. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said contact means includes apair of electrically-conductive contact members disposed in spacedparallel relation with one another and transversely to the path ofmovement of the mass means, said circuit means connecting said membersto said safety deVices so that a circuit is established between thecontact members for actuating the safety devices when the mass meansengages across the members.